Vikings Make Yet Another Starting QB Change for Week 18
Josh Frey
|
For the third time in four weeks, the Minnesota Vikings are making a change at the starting QB position.
Since Kirk Cousins went down with a torn Achilles back in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers, the Vikings have been flip-flopping between Josh Dobbs, Jaren Hall, and Nick Mullens at the position.
Vikings Make Yet Another Starting QB Change
The latest change comes after the New Year’s Eve debacle against those same Packers, in which Jaren Hall started and completed just five of his 10 passes for 67 yards and an interception. After the Vikings fell down by a score of 23-3, Kevin O’Connell made the decision to put Nick Mullens in to finish the game.
That is precisely who will get the ball in Week 18 as well. O’Connell announced during his Wednesday press conference that Mullens will start against the Detroit Lions. The Vikings later tweeted, confirming the decision, “Head Coach Kevin O’Connell has announced that Nick Mullens will get the start Sunday in Detroit.”
Mullens has started twice for the Vikings during the 2023 season, coming in in Weeks 15 and 16 against the Cincinnati Bengals and Detroit Lions. In total, the veteran backup has thrown for 910 yards, five touchdowns, and six interceptions for Minnesota this year while completing 67.3% of his passes.
O’Connell elaborated on the decision to start Mullens by saying, “To me, Nick has, like what went into the decision last week, Nick has been a very effective moving the team. We’ve been very explosive as an offense when he’s been in there. Nick knows that the one area that we must focus on is the possession of the football.”
Turnovers have been the downfall of Minnesota throughout the season. They are averaging a full two turnovers per game, which is tied for the second-most in the entire NFL. The Vikings have turned the ball over two times or more in 10 of their 16 games and have lost the turnover battle 10 times as well.
As of now, there is no decision on who will be the backup to Mullens in case things go downhill in this game. In each of Mullens’ previous two starts, it has been Hall who took on the backup role.
While the Vikings sit at 7-9 heading into the final weekend of the regular season, they have not totally been eliminated from the playoffs yet.
As a result, there is still some importance for this game against the Lions. Kickoff is scheduled for 12 PM Central inside Ford Field on Sunday, January 7th.
Vikings Bring an Old Friend to the Practice Squad Ahead of Week 18
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.